GB: The Contract
by WayWardWonderer
Summary: An ancient spirit holds a grudge against Peter Venkman's bloodline and takes him as her prisoner to pay off an old debt. Egon Spengler, Ray Stantz and Winston Zeddemore must find a way into her ghostly prison and rescue Peter before it's too late.
1. Ambushed

The thick black smoke steadily cleared from the decimated makeshift battlefield. Dr. Egon Spengler was laying on his chest on the ground, his jumpsuit torn, his glasses broken and blood stained his skin with fresh wounds and gnawing pain. The slashes to his clothing had been so deep that his black t-shirt beneath was just as tattered as the gray jumpsuit, with just as many blood stains that now marred the iconic uniform.

The proton pack that had been his primary weapon had been torn from his back and destroyed with a single, swift strike. Debris from what was once the incredible instrument for scientific purposes was now an irreparably mangled lump of scorched metal resting several yards from where Egon laid.

Lifting his head slowly Egon blinked a few times to clear his vision of the haze and blood that hindered his already limited vision. "No..." His bruised, bloodied left hand reached up slowly in a trembling motion to the form of his colleague, Dr. Peter Venkman, who was laying on his side motionless just a few feet away. Obstructing his line of sight a familiar, powerful foe loomed menacingly over him and stole his attention. "You can't... You can't do this!"

Smiling with a sinister sneer that shone brilliantly against the darkened, hooded face that bore it, Moirai took great pleasure in watching the lone Ghostbuster laying helpless and prone at her feet.

Moirai donned a long black robe that trailed behind her tall, slender frame. The sleeves were longer than her arms and the hem formed a long bell like covering that kept her body concealed beneath the dark fabric. Wind wisped her robe about lightly, contrasting against the environment of the harsh battleground that the group had gathered upon.

"We will..." Egon's hand fell slightly as his eyelids drooped with fatigue as unconsciousness crept in to take over his mind. "We will find a way... To stop you!"

The feminine deity turned her back without even the slightest hint of intimidation from the downed physicist as she hovered over Peter's body. "Such arrogance." She waved her sleeved hand and created a wave of dark purple energy that washed over Peter's form and consumed him within the energy. "Mortals fail to appreciate the life that they are given." Peter's body had disappeared as the energy wave dissipated. "Your demise is imminent, why resist the inevitable?"

"No!" Egon refused to accept what had just unfolded before his eyes. "Peter..."

"Your friend will pay for his crimes. Do not risk your blood for his."

With those final words Moirai disappeared in a burst of purple light that electrified the air, leaving only a small ring of charred earth behind.

Unable to get up, unable to do anything help Peter, unable to resist his own injuries Egon closed his eyes and allowed the bliss of unconsciousness take him into the painless void of darkness and sleep...

* * *

 _Earlier that same morning..._

The firehouse that had been renovated and repurposed as the headquarter for the Ghostbusters was busy as a call reporting a swarm of tiny imps terrorizing China Town had summoned Dr. Raymond 'Ray' Stantz and Winston Zeddemore to the scene of the call. Egon and Peter had stayed behind in case a second call was reported, and so the two men could finish chronicling the collected data on the bizarre surges in psychokinetic energy that had been occurring throughout the city for the past twenty-four hours.

As Egon, wearing his white lab coat over his usual three piece gray suit, set down a large volume of paranormal history Peter flinched and pressed his hands to the sides of his head in pain. "Easy! My hangover would greatly appreciate it if you'd take it down a notch..."

"Sorry Venkman." Egon apathetically apologized as he picked up a clipboard and began taking notes. "You should know quite well by now that excessive drinking will result in massive dehydration, nausea and headaches. Especially since you are no longer a college student with a higher tolerance level for alcohol and pain."

"Yeah... I know." Peter pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes in an attempt to block out the dim lighting of the firehouse's rec room. Unlike Egon his current outfit was the opposite of professional; blue jeans, an old gray t-shirt and a dark blue over shirt was all indicative of Peter's more laidback nature. "But it's tradition, ya' know? Every birthday since turning twenty-one I have to go party and make an ass out of myself."

"I'm very aware of this tradition you have decided to uphold." Egon gave his friend an odd look but continued to make notes on the clipboard. "I've put up with it for the past six years now."

"Should've been there for the big 'two-one'," Peter tried to joke but his headache was too painful. "never been so sick in all my life!"

"I've seen the photographs." Egon reminded him sharply. "I'm proud that you've at least refrained from dismantling furniture and vomiting on vehicles."

"Watch it Spengz," Peter playfully cautioned as he pointed a finger at his friend. "the day is still young and I wouldn't mind taking apart your fancy computers to see what makes them tick!"

A stern look and cocked eyebrow was the single response Egon gave Peter as he set aside the clipboard and opened the heavy volume of information.

"So what did you do for your thirtieth birthday?" Peter asked in an attempt to distract himself from the monstrous hangover that constantly plagued him. "Turning thirty is kind of a milestone after all."

Egon looked up from the volume to make eye contact with Peter. "I spent the evening with my former girlfriend and watched a movie."

"That's it?"

"Yes."

"Wow... you party animal!"

"Where was I during all this?" Peter had known Egon for about eight years and in that time he hadn't known Egon to celebrate any date for any reason.

"You were hosting your failed television show during our brief respite as Ghostbusters."

"Oh yeah..." Peter was always bad at keeping track of him, especially when it revolved around other people. "That was... what? About four months before we were back in business?"

"Four months, one week and two days to be precise."

"Show off..."

The soft clicking of heels walking up the stairs to the second floor was enough to make Peter flinch once again and move his hands from eyes to his ears. Janine Melnitz, the fiery and loyal receptionist to the Ghostbusters, walked into the rec room with a bottle of ibuprofen and a glass of water in her hands. She stopped and stood in front of Peter and offered him the two items.

"Here. This is your birthday present from me." She quipped dryly. "Enjoy it."

"Janine," Peter gratefully took the two items greedily from her hands. "you're the absolute best! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, even if it's me!"

"Gee, thanks." Janine ignored the comment as Peter downed two pills and gulped the water in a rather frantic matter. From the small pocket on her skirt she took a neatly folded piece of paper and handed it over to Egon. "Here ya' go, another call."

"Another?" Egon accepted the paper and unfolded it.

Peter let out a very loud, theatrical sigh of irritation. "It's not even noon! Why are we so busy?"

Egon read the details that Janine written down on the paper and closed the book he had opened in the process. "Another massive spike in energy had been reported in the abandoned warehouse storage facility in the outskirts of the city."

Janine heard the phone ringing downstairs and took her leave of the room to answer it. "I didn't get a name on that call," she shouted as she jogged down the stairs. "only the address!"

"Let me guess," Peter sarcastically lamented as he rubbed at his aching temples. "we need to go check it out."

"Correct."

"Great. Can't we wait for Ray and Winston to get back? They love road trips outside of the city!"

"I'm afraid not Peter." Egon slipped off his white lab coat and draped it over the chair. "We'll take Ecto-2. It'd be best for us to check out this abnormal reading sooner rather than later."

"Somehow I knew you'd day that..." Peter reluctantly rose from his seat and walked very slowly down the stairs to the garage. "Just do me one favor."

"What's that?" Egon asked as he followed his friend down the staircase.

"Do NOT turn on the siren..."

"Deal."

Though not uncommon to receive a call that took the Ghostbusters out of the city and into sparsely populated areas, it was still an unusual change of scenery for Peter as he had spent his entire life living in the city. Egon had grown up in a small town in Ohio which made it easier for him to adjust to the more opened spaces of the environment. Even the act of driving the pick-up truck that is Ecto-2 wasn't unusual for Egon as that type of vehicle was more abundant in more rural settings as opposed to big cities.

"How come we always have to go to abandoned places to hunt for ghosts?" Peter asked bitterly with his arms folded over his chest. "Why can't we go explore the Haunted Mansion at Disney World or something?"

"Because the ghosts in the Haunted Mansion are supposed to be there."

"Tee-hee." Peter snapped as he stared at the opened road ahead of him. "Feels so weird not fighting through traffic. I don't like it."

"Don't worry Peter, the storage facility is just around the corner. We'll take a reading and get you back to the firehouse so you can sleep through your headache."

"Thanks Egon, but I think a full day off would be better than just a nap..."

"That could be arranged." Egon stated as he pulled the truck into the vacated parking lot of the abandoned storage site. "Once Ray and Winston return you'll be able to go home and rest."

"I'm going to hold you to that!" Peter declared as he and Egon exited the cab of the truck. "Now... where do we start?"

Egon pulled open the rear door of the truck bed to slide out a rolling rack holding two proton packs and two PKE meters. As he hefted a proton pack onto his back he motioned with a nod toward the wide open space at the center of the storage facility that rested between half a dozen vacated, rusty rectangular storage containers.

"I suggest we start at the center and work our way out."

"Sounds good." Peter picked up a meter and turned it on. It instantly picked up on an energy signature that was emanating from the designated area. "Let's get going. My head is killing me..."

"Very well." Egon walked beside Peter as his friend scanned the area with the meter.

It was quiet in the area. Far enough away from the city to escape the chaos of the constant traffic, shouting voices, rumbling subway and other blaring city ambience the abandoned local produced an unintentional weight of isolation and desolation. The screech of the PKE meter and rhythmic steps of the heavy boots over the cracked concrete ground seemed uncharacteristically loud in the wide open area.

"There should be something here." Egon noted the reading on the display of the meter. A small blip on the radar was becoming more intense in energy level the closer they walked toward the center of the area. "We're very close."

"Hey, uh, Spengz..." Peter froze midstep as a terrifying thought popped into his aching head. "we're the only ones out here, so who called us?"

Egon froze as well. Peter had stopped walking a few feet behind Egon and wasn't budging from his spot. Realizing that they've foolishly and willingly went into the designated area without any confirmation or details was enough to make a chill run up his spine.

"We should head back." Peter decided quickly.

"Agreed!"

Before either man could retreat the ground began to tremble violently causing cracks, fissures and other imperfections to snake alone the brittle concrete ground. What sounded like thunder began to rumble from under the ground as gusts of wind blew upward in harsh torrents through the newly opened and ever widening cracks in the ground that now surrounded the two men.

Peter and Egon instinctively dropped down to their knees and put their arms over their hands and faces to protect themselves from the incredible display of paranormal energy that was being displayed.

"Spengler!" Peter shouted over the roaring wind that surrounded them in a whirling barricade of air. "What do we do?!"

"I don't know!"

The wind suddenly stopped swirling, shot downward and dispersed over the ground in a strong tidal wave of gusting energy. Egon and Peter were blown back by the wind and fell to the ground with a forceful thud!

Egon managed to push himself up from his side and take a knee, but Peter had been thrown in such a way that his head struck a rock and was rendered unconscious due to the blow to the head. Seeing his friend defenseless and motionless forced Egon into a sprint toward Peter in a desperate bid to try and protect his friend.

Before he could reach Peter just a few yards away Egon felt a strong force lift him up from the ground with an unseen hand. Turning his gaze to look over his shoulder he saw the ethereal being responsible for the chaos that had just unfolded. Its arm was outstretched in Egon's direction, indicating that it was the reason Egon had been lifted off his feet and into the air.

"Who are you?" Egon demanded as struggled to turn in the air to face the being directly.

"I am Moirai." The feminine voice responded coldly and bitterly. "Do not interfere."

Egon moved his hand quickly to unsheathe and power up his proton pack thrower but Moirai knew what Egon was attempting to do. Bright green eyes shown through the darkened silhouette provided by the drawn hood as Moirai harnessed her energy and used it to lift loose, jagged rocks created by the damaged ground and swirling the collected debris around Egon.

With a quick flick of her wrist the rocks stopped swirling and launched themselves at Egon's body like a blast of birdshot from a shotgun. Egon cried out in pain as the rocks cut into his skin, bashed into his bones and bruised every inch of flesh the rocks unfortunately touched.

Flicking her wrist once again Moirai pulled the proton pack from Egon's back and let the wounded physicist fall to the ground several feet below. As Egon's body impacted the ground with a horrific crash Moirai used her invisible touch to smolder, dismantle, crumple and twist the proton pack into an indiscernible shape before throwing it to the ground with an abject indifference.

"I warned you." Moirai repeated sternly as she descended from the air and to the ground just as Egon was regaining his composure. "Do not interfere. I will take what I am owed. Peter Venkman shall be my prisoner."

Angrily Egon pushed himself up on his elbow to glare at the ethereal foe who had so easily bested the two Ghostbusters without so much as blinking. Egon could feel his right swelling shut as a painful bruised formed on the orbital bone, the right lens in his glasses had been broken during the fall which only inhibited his sight further. Ignoring the pain that radiated throughout his entire body as best as he could Egon tried to get up, tried to take a final defiant stand against Moirai to protect his friend. A stand that the otherworldly deity merely scoffed at upon seeing the physicist futilely trying to defy her power.

"Do not test me." The black robed being lifted her hand to gather the surrounding rocks once more. Without so much as second thought she took aim at the downed man. "Do not act foolishly."

Unable to say anything or even possibly attempt to get out of the line of fire Egon just shot the vile woman an angry, rebellious glare as he braced himself for the impact of stones against his body for the second time.

The rocks flew toward Egon and all he knew went black.

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	2. Out Cold

It didn't take long for Ray and Winston to finish their task and return to the firehouse. With a dozen smoking traps filled with troublesome imps the two men were absolutely exhausted and trudged heavily toward the basement stairs with the traps slung over their hunched, slouched shoulders. Sweat and dirt stained their faces, necks and hands. Their jumpsuits were just as dirty and had small holes ripped throughout their legs and arms thanks to the sharp fangs of the swarming, ghostly pests.

"Hi Janine." Winston greeted lowly as he and Ray walked by her desk. "Where are Peter and Egon?"

"Out on a call." She answered without looking away from her computer screen. A pencil was clenched between her teeth which made her words sounds a little muffled as she spoke. "They've been gone for about half an hour."

"Oh."

One by one Ray and Winston inserted the traps into the chute of the massive ecto-containment unit and deposited the imps into the paranormal prison. As the traps emptied steadily the two men leaned tiredly against the walls of the basement as their physical exhaustion was evidently wearing them down.

"Only four more to go." Ray stated as he picked up the next trap while tossing the previous one aside. "I think this is some kind of record."

"For most exhausted before noon? Oh yeah, I'll agree with you on that one."

"Is this worse than dealing with Gozer or Vigo?" Ray asked playfully as he finished emptying the trap in his hands.

"Is anything worse than Gozer or Vigo?"

"What about Venkman's cooking?"

"That's in its own league of terrifying!" Winston commented with a slight chuckle to his voice. "Don't tell him I said that, he might try even more new recipes on us."

"Don't worry," Ray inserted the final trap and began to deposit the imp inside the prison. "I'll keep your secret. I can still taste that weird pizza he made three months ago."

With all of the traps emptied the two Ghostbusters sealed the containment unit and set the traps into their chargers to replenish the batteries for the next impending call.

"Come on." Ray walked steadily up the stairs, his pace was slow from fatigue and foot steps were heavy. "Let's see if they're back yet."

Janine had finished typing up her report and was now using a nail file to give herself a quick manicure while she awaited her next assignment. As she blew gently on her fingertips the two Ghostbusters exited the basement and joined her at her little office area set up just outside the bulk of the garage.

"Anything new happen while we were downstairs?" Ray asked as he took a seat in front of her desk.

"Nope. No calls. No sign of Egon or Dr. V."

"Where'd they go?" Winston opened his locker at the right wall of the garage to replace his torn jumpsuit with a clean one.

"To an abandoned storage lot outside the city." Janine replied firmly as she handed Ray a copy of the address she had written down on her notepad. "Peter was still a little hungover, so I bet they're going to be working kinda' slow today."

"Abandoned storage lot?" Ray's eyes lit up with excitement. "If this is the place I think it is then we should head out and give them a hand!"

"Uh, why's that?" Winston zipped up his fresh jumpsuit and threw his tattered one into the nearby trashcan. "An abandoned lot doesn't sound too complicated of a place to check out."

"You're right, it isn't." Ray got up from his seat and joined Winston at the lockers. He too pulled open his locker to retrieve a new jumpsuit. "But this lot was built notoriously close to an ancient Indian burial ground. AND..." Ray quickly slipped off his old jumpsuit and replaced it with the new one. "there's a rumor that ancient ruins from a secretive society had been unearthed during the construction of the lot."

"Let me guess," Winston grinned slightly as he folded his arms over his chest and leaned casually against his locker. "the lot was supposedly cursed and that's why the place went out of business. Right?"

"Right!" Zipping up his jumpsuit he motioned toward Ecto-1 with his hand. "Want to go exploring?"

"Might as well." Winston tossed Ray the keys to the hearse and strolled over to the passenger door. "Janine, if we get any more calls contact us over the radio."

"No problem guys!" Janine called out as she continued to fuss with her nails. "Have fun."

* * *

A skin chilling cold was the first thing Peter felt as the darkness slowly left his mind. The smell of must and old earth filled his nose and the steady rhythm of dripping water seemed to echo forever in the otherwise silent room. Opening his eyes Peter found himself staring at large gray stones that lined the walls and the floor of the odd, unfamiliar room in which he found himself alone.

"Spengz?" Peter's headache was as intense as ever. "What... the..." He realized that he was laying on his back and slowly sat upright. A heaviness on his hands that 'clanked' as he moved about drew his attention to his arms. "Shackles?"

Two massive metal cuffs were fastened around his wrists in an uncomfortably tight manner. The metal restraints were secured to one another by a single link rather than a chain to hinder his movements all the more. The weight and overall tightness of the cuffs caused deep purple bruises to form on his wrists and small cuts to ooze blood painfully every tight he flexed his fingers.

"Where... am I?" Peter asked himself as he stood up on shaking legs, his arms hanging low in front of him as he struggled to compensate for the additional weight around his hands.

"You are my prisoner." Moirai responded through the seemingly wide open doorway. A single layer of ethereal energy provided a translucent barrier between the cell and the exterior corridor. "Welcome to Bastille of Fog."

"Bastille of Fog?" Peter repeated slowly.

"A prison with no escape." Moirai hissed bitterly. "With your imprisonment a great injustice has been remedied. Ready yourself for a lengthy eternity of isolation."

"I don't know what your beef with me is lady," Peter defended in a snippy and cruel manner. "but I swear I'm innocent!"

"No one is truly innocent." With those final words the robed deity gracefully glided away from the cell and out of Peter's line of sight.

"Prison?" Peter sat down abruptly on the stone bench that jutted outward from the wall. "But why? What did I do?"

Sitting alone in the confining cell of cold stone Peter closed his eyes and wallowed in self pity. The icy cold air of the prison relentlessly cut into his skin, easily chilling him through the torn fabric of his jumpsuit at his shoulder, his leg and around his wrists. Unable to wrap his arms around himself to stave off the freezing air Peter forced himself to endure the harsh conditions as he tried to think of a plan of escape.

"Egon!" Peter's eyes shot open with fear as his thoughts took him back to the final moments just before his capture. "What happened to Egon?! Is he alright?!"

* * *

The drive out of the city was uneventful and somewhat boring as Ray and Winston set off to join their colleagues at the scene of the second call of the morning. Little traffic and even fewer people gave the entire area a sense of foreboding and dread, almost as if the land had been left untouched for a reason, or had been abandoned entirely out of fear.

"It's just around this turn." Winston directed Ray along the road as they approached the abandoned lot. "I can see Ecto-2 from here."

"Good, we didn't miss them!"

As the hearse pulled up alongside the pick-up truck both men eyed the lot suspiciously. There was a sign of a massive struggle but no sign of combatants.

"What the hell happened out here?" Winston asked as he pushed open his door and stood beside the hearse. "Looks like an earthquake shook the place!"

"Yeah... And where are Peter and Egon? They shouldn't be too far from the truck."

"Let's take a look around."

"Right."

Walking with careful, meticulous steps the two men maneuvered around the massive fissures and potholes that littered the lot with the carnage of the previous battle. The remaining rusted metal cargo containers had been displaced by the violent tremors leaving large scrapes in the surface of the concrete as evidence of their forced movement. Massive chunks of the concrete had been broken loose leaving potholes behind and the missing pieces of the concrete rested next to the holes like massive jagged shrapnel.

"Whatever happened here happened recently." Winston observed as he looked around the area curiously. An unusually shaped metal object resting on the surface of the lot caught his attention. Walking over to the object he attempted to identify it and his heart skipped a beat when he recognized the mangled design of a proton pack. "What happened out here?"

"Winston!" Ray shouted in a frightful tone as he raced across the lot to a form on the ground. "It's Egon!"

"Egon?" Winston immediately took off after Ray.

Ray skidded to a clumsy stop as he dropped down to his knees and put his hand on Egon's back to check on his friend. The blood stains and tears along the fabric of the gray jumpsuit matched the level of destruction of the lot around them.

"He's still breathing." Ray stated as he rested his hand on Egon's back. He ran his hand along Egon's spine and up his neck. "I don't feel any breaks or dislocations along his spinal column."

"How's his head?" Winston asked as he knelt on Egon's opposite side.

"I can see a cut but I can't tell if he's suffered any skull fracture or a concussion."

"Well until we know for certain let's treat him like he is concussed."

"Good plan."

"Come on," Winston moved his hands to Egon's shoulder, careful of the deep laceration that ran along the limb. "turn him onto his back, careful of his neck."

"Okay, yeah. Easy does it..." Ray supported Egon's neck and head as Winston turned over the injured physicist from his chest and onto his back. "That's it..."

The additional bleeding injuries that marred Egon's chest and abdomen made the two men flinch. A deep, long laceration stretched across his chest. Multiple cuts along his upper abdomen was indicative of the multiple rocks that had bombarded his entire body and left large bruises or cuts behind.

"Oh man," Winston winced at the sight he looked up at Egon's bleeding, bruises face. "something beat the hell out of him!"

"Or someone..." Ray timidly suggested as he put his hand to Egon's face and patted gently. "Egon? Hey Egon, can you hear me?"

A low groan of pain was the only response. His body twitched slightly as somewhere deep inside Egon's partially conscious mind he recognized the voices of his friends.

"We should get him to a hospital." Ray moved his hand from Egon's face and rested it down on his chest.

A weak, bloodied hand reached up and wrapped around Ray's forearm. "...Peter."

"Peter?" Winston's eyes went wide with fear. "Where is he Egon? We haven't seen him!"

"...t-taken."

"Taken?" Winston almost whispered. "Who took him?"

"...M-Moirai." Egon's eyes opened slightly only to close again immediately. "She took him."

"Moirai?" Ray's brow arched curiously. "Why does that name ring a bell?"

Egon's hand went limp and fell from Ray's arm back to the ground.

"As much as I hate doing this, we can't take Egon to the hospital right now."

"Wait, what?" Winston looked at Ray like he had just lost his mind. "Egon's hurt! He needs medical attention!"

"I know he does, but he's the only one who knows what happened here and where Peter has gone." Ray explained calmly. "Besides, you know Egon won't stay in the hospital while Peter is still missing. At least if we take him back to the firehouse and take care of him ourselves we won't have to worry about him trying to escape the hospital."

"Good point." Winston moved his arms under Egon's shoulders and lifted him up slightly as to carry him much easier to Ecto-1. "Who knew scientists could be so stubborn?"

* * *

Peter desperately pulled at his shackles futilely, propping his boot down on the lone link that chained the two cuffs together and stepped down while pulling his arms up. The cuffs were too tight and wouldn't budge loose or even slip over his sore hands.

"Come on, COME. ON." Peter begged through gritted teeth as he fought to free his hands from the metal bindings. "COME. OFF!"

His boot slipped from the link and the intense motion caused Peter's arms to jerk back with tremendous force and he smacked his head back against the stone wall with a painful 'thud'.

"OW!" Peter cried out loudly as he leaned forward against his knees, unable to cradle his throbbing head in his restrained hands. The strike to the head only made his lingering headache worse! "I hope Egon's alright... because I'm not doing so good..."

 _ **...to be continued...  
**_


	3. Safe But Not Sound

The garage door of the firehouse opened wide as Ecto-1, with its lights and siren blaring, backed into the building parked in the center of the garage quickly. Through the opened door of the garage Janine could see Ecto-2 drive by to pull into the parking space set up for it behind the firehouse itself. As the lights and siren turned off she rose from her desk and walked over to the rear of the parked hearse as Winston opened the driver's side door.

"Winston? What's going on? What's with all the commotion?"

"It's a little complicated." Winston stated as he pulled open the rear passenger door of the hearse and leaned inside to put his hands under Egon's shoulders.

"Egon! What happened?!" Janine covered her mouth with her hands as the shock of seeing her dear friend in such a horrid state caught her off guard. "Is he going to be alright?"

"We think so." Winston confirmed as Ray raced through the backdoor of the firehouse and joined him at the hearse. "He's unconscious but he's stable."

"Did he wake up at all during the drive?" Ray asked as he bent down to scoop up Egon's legs and help carry him out of the vehicle.

"No, he was out the whole time." Winston confirmed as he lifted Egon up from the seat and supported the weight of his limp upper body in his hands.

Ray let out a weary sigh as he and Winston worked together to lift Egon up and out of the back of the hearse. "Well, let's hope he comes around soon. We still have so many questions that need answers and he's the only one who has them!"

Janine followed quietly as Ray and Winston carried Egon up the stairs to the second floor of the firehouse and into the sanctuary of the bunk room so he could recover in peace.

* * *

Unable to withstand the horrendous pain in his head any longer Peter resided to curling up on his side on the stone bench in a desperate bid to sleep and escape the perpetual ache that gnawed at his every nerve.

"She'll kill you, you know?" A mysterious disembodied voice of a young female spoke to Peter from an unseen location.

"Pardon?" Peter's eyes popped open as he looked around his cell confusedly. "Who's speaking, please?"

"It's just me." The voice replied playfully. "Your new neighbor."

"Neighbor, huh? How long have you been here?"

"Long enough." She answered casually. "In time she'll grow tired of you and kill you. Then the cycle begins anew."

"Cycle?" Peter didn't understand what she was talking about. "What cycle?"

"You'll find out soon enough." The voice giggled in a somewhat playful manner as she provided her cryptic answer. "Stay quiet for now, or else her minions will tell her about our conversation."

"What minions?"

The voice didn't respond, she fell as silent as she had been when Peter first arrived.

"Hello? Miss?"

Nothing.

"...Fine." Peter closed his eyes and tried to sleep through the pounding headache that throbbed in his skull mercilessly. "I didn't want to know anyway..."

* * *

Janine was sitting on the edge of Egon's bed with a cold, damp washcloth in her hand and a first aid kit sitting on the nightstand beside it. His broken glasses were folded neatly beside the kit, despite being rendered useless from damage. She gently cleaned the various cuts and scraped along Egon's forehead and under his swollen eye. As she delicately pressed the cold compress against the tender injuries Egon began to loll his head back and forth slowly against his pillow.

"Shh..." Janine soothed calmly and quietly as she pressed the cold washcloth against Egon's swollen black eye with a light pressure. "You're safe now."

Moving as carefully as possible Janine unzipped the jumpsuit down from Egon's chest to where the fabric of the suit had been torn apart by Moirai's attac with the sharpened rocks. The zipper itself has been destroyed which left Janine with no choice but to pull the connected teeth apart with her hands until the entirety of the jumpsuit had been open. The black fabric of his t-shirt was also shredded and saturated with dried blood that stuck the fabric to Egon's skin like glue. Through the holes in the t-shirt the bloodied cuts and dark bruises were visible against his naturally pale complexion.

"These cuts are going to get infected." Janine whispered as she set about cleaning the long laceration across his chest. As the cold washcloth made contact with Egon's tender skin his entire body tensed in response to the chilly touch, causing the laceration to begin bleeding again. "It'll be okay Egon," Janine reassured her injured friend. "just be patient and give yourself a chance to heal."

Taking in a sharp deep breath Egon, sweating, suddenly bolted upright on his bed with abject fear in his eyes. As he sat up Janine leaned back but put her hands up and pressed them lightly against Egon's chest.

"Easy! You're safe!"

"Peter?" Egon asked panting as he awoke from his nightmare. "Where's Peter?"

Janine shook her head solemnly. "We don't know. Not yet."

Egon's eyes shut and he bowed his head sadly. "It's my fault. I should've been able to protect him."

"No," Janine refuted as she moved one hand to the side of Egon's face and gently caressed his cheek. "what happened out there wasn't your fault. We all know you'd never leave anyone behind or give up on a friend."

Unable to fend off the guilt Egon continued to blame himself. "Peter wasn't feeling well. I never should've asked him to go with me. And I should've looked into the call, should've confirmed the legitimacy of the case before even leaving..."

"Egon," Janine refused to let him blame himself any further. "it's NOT your fault."

Too tired, too weak and feeling too defeated to keep his emotional resolve he leaned forward toward Janine desperately needing to feel safe amongst friends. "I'm so sorry Janine... Peter's gone and I couldn't do anything to stop it."

Janine wrapped her arms around Egon's shoulder and ran her hand through his hair as she embraced him in a warm hug. "At least you're safe..."

Rather than giving Egon a sense of comfort Janine's words filled him with guilt. He had survived the attack and avoided being abducted by Moirai while Peter hadn't been so fortunate.

Slowly Janine loosened her hug around Egon and returned her hand to the side of his face to retain the sense of much needed comfort. "Now, please, let me help you. Try to get some rest and let me take care of you. I mean!" Janine blushed a little. "I mean your injuries! Let me help you get cleaned up..."

Egon didn't even notice the comment or react to Janine's brief embarrassment. Moving his hand slowly up to the collar of his torn t-shirt he tried to lift the fabric up and over is head but he didn't have the strength.

"Here." Janine gently took hold of the shirt by the collar and around the shoulders to pull the damaged garment from Egon's body to completely expose the wounds beneath. But the sight of the cuts, bruises and dried blood was a little too extreme for her to bear. Keeping her cool Janine focused on cleaning up the injuries without showing her discomfort to her suffering friend. "Now, let me go find the first aid kit. We're going to need more than just a few bandages for this."

Egon watched as Janine calmly exited the bunk room for the adjoined bathroom to retrieve the large first aid kit stored inside the room. Looking down at his arms and chest Egon lifted a hand and watched it tremble from physical weakness before clenching it into a tight fist of frustration.

"I'm sorry Peter. I'll find a way to save you."

* * *

Downstairs in the private lab Ray had begun researching the name Moirai through Tobin's Spirit Guide, but found no leads. The other volumes of paranormal entities and locales provided just as little information about the mysterious deity leading only to a dead end. Despite the extensive collection of impressively detailed reports of any and all paranormal entities, deities, gods, demons and other super natural beings Ray was unable to locate the name Moirai and quickly grew frustrated with the lack of definitive answers.

Massive stacks of hastily read books lined the desk and were piling up on the floor beside Ray's chair where he sat. Manila folders that contained sightings, photographs and other pieces of paranormal evidence had also proven useless during this particular search for answers, and were strewn about with uncharacteristic indifference by the engineer.

"I've been looking for hours and found nothing!" Ray slammed the book down on the desk and pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes. "But I KNOW I've heard that name before! But where?"

"Moirai?" Winston wrote the name out on a notepad and stared at it as if the answer would materialize before his eyes. "Sounds like a character in a sci-fi novel."

Sighing Ray leaned forward and tried to clear the frustration from his thoughts.

"Maybe you should take a break? You haven't eaten anything all day and the last thing we need is another Ghostbuster to end up bedridden."

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

"Go drink some coffee and find something to eat. I'll keep looking through the books for you."

"No, no..." Ray stubbornly refused to budge from his seat. "I can do this, I just need a little more time."

"Remember what I said about stubborn scientists?" Winston joked a little to try and lighten the mood.

"Not stubborn." Ray denied. "Just focused."

"And tired. Go take a break."

"No, I'm fine! Really!"

"Okay Ray, if you say so." Winston didn't believe his friend's claims to be alright, but he also didn't want to push his stress limits to a breaking point. "Well, what can I do to help?"

"Uh, I don't know. Maybe go see how Egon is doing. I'm going to go back through these books, I must've missed something. Maybe her name has a different spelling than what we're assuming or she's a lesser being with a small section in the book."

"But if this name isn't in your usual array of paranormal documents," Winston had a new thought. He pointed a finger as he processed his idea and addressed Ray confidently. "then maybe she's a being that comes myths or legends."

"Myths?" Ray dropped his hands from his eyes as eureka flashed through his mind. "Wait a minute! That's it!" He turned and pointed to a large leather bound tome on the shelf of the far wall. "Greek Mythology! That's where I know the name!"

Winston grabbed the book and handed it to Ray who threw open the cover and began sifting quickly through the pages. Like a man on a mission Ray scanned through each page until he found the name he had been so impatiently looking for.

"There! Moirai!" Ray put his finger down on the printed name and pointed for Winston to see. "Moirai is the personification of fate itself!"

"Fate? What does fate want with Peter?"

"I... That I don't know." Ray admitted with a slight hesitation.

"Great." Winston sat down on the desk next to the book and stared blankly at the floor, lost in deep thought. "We answer one question only to have another pop up."

"Well, at least we made some progress." Ray tried to remain optimistic but the doubt in his mind was evident as he spoke. "And now that we've identified the 'who' we can now identify the 'why' and uncover her reason for attacking Egon and taking Peter as her prisoner."

"I hope so." Winston looked down at his watch and noted the time. "It's been almost nine hours since they were attacked. Who knows what shape Peter is in?"

"If Egon is anything to go by then we can assume it won't be good..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	4. Hold On

It didn't take Janine long to clean and bandage the injuries that had racked Egon's body. Using Egon's guidance Janine found it rather simple to properly disinfect the cuts and cover them under the protective bandages. The pain alone had left Egon exhausted and he had quickly fallen asleep under Janine's care as she happily volunteered to watch over the Ghostbuster that she greatly admired. Keeping an eye pack pressed gently over Egon's swollen eye she watched his steady breathing and silently thanked whatever holy deity that could be watching over the Ghostbusters for allowing Egon to survive the attack and return to the firehouse, and to her.

Winston walked into the bunk room and sat on the bed next to Janine, next to Egon, as she kept vigil over the slumbering physicist. "How's Egon holding up?"

"He's been asleep for a while now." Janine stated softly as she partially lifted the eye pack to check his eye before replacing it gently. "He's banged up pretty badly, maybe we should take him to the hospital."

"I think you're right." Winston agreed though he didn't make a move from where he sat. "But Ray and I are sure that Egon would try to discharge himself from the hospital and try to help until we find Egon. The more he stresses the longer it'll take to heal. Besides, we still need a few details about the attack so we have a better of what kind of deity we're dealing with."

"Well, when I was cleaning up his cuts he told me a little about what happened." Janine stated as she pulled her hand from the ice pack and sat back on the edge of the bed. "He said a powerful she-demon used some kind of earth tremor to knock him and Peter off their feet before she attacked them. Egon said that he's certain that she's a powerful telekinetic who can bend the environment to her will. Or something like that, I can't remember everything he said exactly."

Winston nodded as he took in the information. He leaned forward and folded his hands together and pressed them to his chin as he contemplated the task at hand. "Did he say anything else? Mention a portal or doorway or maybe a prophecy?"

"Uh, nothing like that." Janine wasn't quite sure how to respond to the odd questions. "But he did say that the demon, Moirai, used a strange purple colored energy to drag Peter away."

"Purple energy? That could be an important detail." Winston rose from the bed and gave Egon one last solemn glance before leaving the bunk room. "Thanks for all your help Janine. Let us know if Egon says anything else."

"I will." She agreed as she resumed her watch over the injured man. "Just find a way to bring Dr. V back home!"

"I will."

* * *

An irritating dryness in the back of his throat awoke Peter from his much needed sleep. Sitting up awkwardly, his weighted arms making his movements sluggish and uncoordinated, Peter coughed pathetically and leaned back against the cold stone wall of his lonely cell. The stagnantly cold, dry air of the dungeon was enough to chronically sting his throat and lungs.

"I wouldn't cough so much." The strange feminine voice who had spoken to Peter once before was now addressing him again.

"Oh?" Peter cleared his throat and shook his head, the lingering pain of his headache making dots dance in front of his eyes in the process. "And why's that?"

"Any sound is a sign that a prisoner is rebelling." The voice cautioned firmly in a low tone of voice. "And coughing is seen as weakness. If you try to rebel Moirai she will punish you. If you seem weak she will torture you."

"So... I'm stuck between a rock and hard place?"

"I assume that is an Earthly saying."

"You assume correctly." Peter confirmed as he forced himself to stifle another cough. "So... What's your name?"

The voice giggled as if amused by the question before replying. "I am but a lowly prisoner like yourself. I am nothing more than a series of numbers registered in a forgotten void."

"Humor me." Peter persisted in a somewhat annoyed but still lighthearted manner. "Please."

"I was once known as Naiad." The voice answered in a sincere tone. "But now I am no one."

"Well, 'no one'," Peter retorted sharply. "I think I prefer Naiad. I'm Peter."

"It's unfortunate we were ever introduced." Naiad's voice was suddenly heavy with sorrow.

"Why's that?"

"To know me is to be lost to oblivion by Moirai."

"How... How long have you been here?"

"You ask a lot of questions." Naiad's voice was quickly filled with spirit once again. "That's enough for now."

"Come on!" Peter hated the silent treatment, even if it was by a disembodied voice that he had never known before. "Please! Talk to me!"

Naiad didn't answer. Her voice was as silent and empty as the corridor outside Peter's locked cell.

Residing himself reluctantly to the overwhelming silence of his imprisonment Peter pulled his legs up from the floor of the cell and onto the bench as he tried to wrap his cuffed arms up and around his legs to desperately try to keep warm against the relentless cold of the ethereal dungeon. As another cough barely escaped his lips Peter pressed his face down against his kneecaps and shut his eyes.

Trapped, weak and without any allies to rely on Peter Venkman felt, for the very first time in his life, truly helpless.

* * *

With the new information passed on to Ray from Winston and Janine the dedicated engineer resumed his search for answers in properly identifying the correct course of action with locating and rescuing Peter. Little did anyone know that the detail of the purple energy would prove itself more invaluable than anything else at the time.

"Ah-ha!" Ray pressed his fingertip down on a passage in a massive tome detailing energy signatures of the ethereal plane. Isolating a single paragraph Ray excitedly read the information aloud to Winston. "We got it! Purple energy of an ethereal origin is a signature of a spirit descending of a regal bloodline. Those who carry such a signature are often of a poltergeist of a vengeful nature."

"So we know what she is," Winston wasn't nearly as excited about the new information as Ray was. "now how do find where she is?"

"Getting to that!" Ray exclaimed boldly. "Poltergeists exhibiting this level of power are capable of creating portals between the plane of the living and the plane of the dead on land that connected to their bloodline."

"The abandoned lot?"

"The abandoned lot." Ray confirmed with a confident grin.

"So how do we get inside the portal?"

"Well, first we-"

A crash from upstairs and muffled voices drew their attention from one another and up the ceiling overhead.

"What was that?" Winston asked as he walked out of the lab with Ray following close behind.

As the two men reached the second floor of the firehouse they spotted Egon kneeling on the floor with Janine right beside him. A broken water glass was on the floor all around Egon, who appeared exhausted and weak.

"Egon!" Ray shouted in surprise. "Janine, what's going on?"

"I tried to keep him from getting up," Janine said as he pulled on Egon's arm. "but he insisted on helping you."

"Hey man," Winston grabbed into Egon's opposite arm and worked with Janine to lift him back up from the floor. "take it easy. We know where Peter is and how to get him back."

"You do?" Egon's eyes were red from the strain of looking around with his glasses. His pupils were also slightly dilated and glassy.

"Yeah," Winston helped guide Egon back to the bed and to lay down. "Ray found some information on that Moirai deity and we're going to follow up on a lead."

"I'll go with you." Egon tried to sit up again but Winston was able to easily overpower him and keep him down.

"No. You're not."

Ray walked into the room and whispered into Janine's ear as as she stood next to Egon's bed. She gave Ray an unsure glance but soon after nodded in agreement. "Winston, you should stay here with Egon."

"Wait, what?" Winston didn't understand why Ray would leave him behind. "You can't go out there alone."

"I won't be." Ray put a hand on Janine's shoulder. "I'll have help."

"Are you..." It was then Winston realized why Ray wanted him to stay behind as he was able to easily keep Egon from getting up again and quickly played along. "Right. No problem. I'll watch over Egon until you two get back."

Egon wasn't fond of the idea and tried to protest, but before he could utter a word Ray interrupted him. "Egon we know you want to help bring Peter home, but you're injured! Not only are you covered in cuts and bruises, but you're eye is swollen shut and I can tell from here that you're suffering from a mild concussion. You can't go out on a bust, you might pass out or exasperate your injuries. It's too risky."

Winston agreed with Ray. "And before you try to insist that you're fine and can go out there, let me ask you this: if it was me, or Ray or Peter who were in your condition would you let us go out on a call or deal with a pissed off ghost?"

Unable to deny that he'd do his best to keep his friends from harm Egon relented and remained quiet as he laid on the bed.

"Don't worry Egon," Ray spoke up with a genuine confidence. "we'll be back in an hour. I'm certain."

"Please don't go out there without a proton pack." Egon urged adamantly. "I know she was able to destroy my proton pack but I had let my guard down. You must find a way to subdue her power before you attempt to confront her." He looked over at Janine with uneasiness in his remaining good eye. "And please, don't get separated."

"We'll be well armed." Ray patted Janine's shoulder to signal her to follow. "One hour. That's all we'll need."

As Ray and Janine took their leave of the bunk room Winston sat on the bed next to Egon to watch over his friend. "Try to relax. Ray's certain he knows what to do, and Janine is far more courageous than we'll ever know."

"I know." Egon's voice was unsteady but he didn't try to argue. "I just hate to stay behind uselessly."

"You're not useless, you're injured. Just give yourself time to heal and try to stop blaming yourself over what happened. You two were ambushed, it's that simple. No one could know what she was planning on doing."

Egon nodded slowly and closed his heavy eyes. The fight against exhaustion was quickly over as Egon submitted to the blackness that stole his mind as he fell into a much needed and deep sleep.

* * *

Taking Ecto-1 out to the abandoned lot Ray informed Janine of his plan and of to properly set up the ion trap to channel the energy signature and frequency that was emitted whenever Moirai used her power. By tapping into that energy with a device that can focus and channel it Ray knew that he'd be able to open a gateway to connect to the ethereal dominion where Moirai was lurking.

It was late in the evening when the Ghostbusters returned to the abandoned lot, but it'd take more than the impending night to frighten the engineer or fiery receptionist.

"Where do we start looking?" Janine asked as she stepped out of the front passenger seat of the hearse and stood beside the vehicle.

"Over there." Ray pointed as he walked backward from the front driver's side door of the hearse and toward the rear compartment to retrieve the trap. "That's where Winston and I found Egon."

Janine followed behind Ray as he pulled the trap out of its storage rack in the rear of the hearse and made his way over to the scene of the attack. The setting sun was symbolic of the over appearance of the battleground and of the fate of the two Ghostbusters had been ambushed by Moirai earlier that same day.

"Right here should work." Ray stood at what appeared to be the epicenter of the activity. There was a perfect circle carved into the concrete by a massive crack caused by Moirai's power and surely would provide an adequate connection between the two planes. "Stand back while I turn on the trap."

Janine stayed outside the circle in the concrete while Ray knelt on the ground and placed the trap in the absolute center of the circle. Pulling the long black cable out to its full length he backed out of the circle and set the release trigger for the trap down on the ground and hovered his boot over it.

"Okay, I calibrated the trap before we left so this should work..." Ray stated as he took in a deep breath then stomped down on the trap.

The ground shook as the trap doors burst open with a beam of white light that transitioned into a vibrant purple hue. As the light intensified a surge of cold air swept over the ground and the loose stones began to tremble on the ground.

"Is this normal?" Janine asked as she stepped closer to Ray fearfully.

"I'm not sure. But-"

A massive shockwave erupted from the ground and sent the loosened stones flying through the air. Ray stepped in front of Janine to shield her from the incoming debris and had taken his eyes from the trap for only a second.

Moirai had sensed their arrival and had broken through the trap's newly opened gateway with a tremendous force. Emerging from the trap she loomed over Ray and Janine ominously.

"Do not interfere." She hissed as more stones flew about through the air.

Ray stepped forward, keeping one arm up to protect his face from harm. "We're not leaving without Peter! Release him or face the consequences!"

"Who are that would command me?" Moirai all but laughed at Ray's threat. "Mortals are so pathetic."

Janine's eyes went wide with fear as a large jagged stone rose from the ground and guided by Moirai's hand flew toward Ray.

"Ray! Watch out!"

Before he had time to react a sharp pain in his stomach dropped the engineer to his knees in great pain. Blood began to seep through the fabric of his jumpsuit as the dangerous rock cut into his flesh and knocked the wind out of his lungs. Too pained to speak Ray gasped for breath as blood flowed freely from his fresh wound and oozed through his fingers as he pressed his hands against the catastrophic injury to his abdomen.

"Ray!"

As Ray fell from his knees and onto his side Janine knelt beside him and leaned down as if she could somehow shield him from Moirai in the same way that he had tried to shield her from the stones.

"This behavior amuses me." Moirai wickedly sneered at the two helpless humans before her. "Perhaps I shall keep you as pets."

Before Janine could say or do anything she found herself and Ray enveloped in Moirai's purple light and being pulled into an icy darkness that she couldn't identify. Just as quickly as the light surrounded her it faded away, revealing an empty stone cell where there was once a wide open lot.

"Ray..." Janine straightened up and rubbed her hand sympathetically along his back. "Ray, please try to get up!"

Weak but determined Ray managed to get to his knees only to fall backward against a stone column in the cell, his hands still clutching at his bleeding abdomen. "J-Janine... Where... Where are we?"

"I don't know." She could see the fear in Ray's eyes and grabbed onto his hand, holding it tightly as she stayed at his side. "But wherever we are I need you to hold on! Alright? Just please, hold on! We're going to make it out of here!"

 _ **...to be continued...  
**_


	5. The Waiting Game

The hour had passed without any sign of Ray, Janine or Peter. Getting worried Winston used the radio to try and make contact with Ecto-1 out in the field but his calls went unanswered. Feeling isolated and somewhat useless Winston decided to act and went into the private lab to do some additional research on Moirai to gain some kind of advantage over the bitterly dangerous deity. With the lives of three Ghostbusters now on the line it was crucial, now more than ever, to find the correct strategy to overpower the malevolent she-demon and send her back to her own realm where she belongs.

Egon had been able to sleep although he wasn't well rested. Sitting up slowly on his bed he swung his legs over the edge and leaned forward. His head was swimming with the brief motion which only emphasized the severity of the blow to his head. Opening the drawer of the nightstand beside his bed he retrieved his spare pair of glasses and placed them over his eyes.

"It's been an hour." Egon stated as he stood up slowly on his trembling legs. Ensuring that he had his balance before taking a step he carefully and very cautiously crossed the bunk room to make his way into the rec room. "Something must have happened to Ray and Janine. Peter is still in danger."

"Egon, lay down!" Winston's voice shouted upward from the first floor. He could hear the slow, heavy footsteps of his injured colleague moving about despite his injuries. "You're not going to do anyone any good if you're too weak to defend yourself."

Unable to deny how terrible he felt Egon resigned to sitting down on the couch in the far corner of the rec room to rest.

"Thank you." Winston waited until he couldn't hear Egon moving around anymore before continuing his research. "Take it easy, I think I found something that can give us the edge over Moirai. Just be patient."

* * *

Peter was awoken abruptly by a deep, painful cough from his own body that stole his breath and sent sharp pains throughout his chest that caused him to curl around himself in a desperate bid to stop the relentless pain. As he violently coughed, his lungs aching and congested, the voice that had been Peter's only companion during his imprisonment spoke up again.

"Try to breathe through the pain." Naiad urged softly, her voice soothing and calm. "Don't let Moirai hear you, or let her minions know you are ill."

"I'm not-" Another coughing fit cut off his words.

"Are too!" Naiad teased lightly. "But you may not be in as much danger as I've feared."

Peter took in a few deep breaths and wiped the saliva from his lips with the sleeve of his arm. "Why's that?"

"A new pair has entered Moirai's domain. For now they'll hold her attention."

"Oh? Friend or foe?"

"Depends on who you'd call a friend and who you'd call a foe." Naiad replied keenly.

"Good point." Peter held his breath as another coughing fit tried to creep up on him. Leaning forward he pressed his forehead against the back of his arms and even through the fabric he could tell that his was running a temperature. "Did they come from my world or yours?"

"Rumor has it that the newest prisoners came from your world."

"Know anything about them?" A weak cough escaped Peter but he managed to keep it from wracking his body violently with another fit.

"One male. One female." Naiad replied. "It appears that the male has been injured while the female remains unharmed."

"Names?"

"Unknown." Naiad's voice lowered suddenly. "Shh... Moirai's guards are patrolling the corridor."

Peter kept silent as he watched through the energy barrier that barred his escape from his cell as two massive orc looking beasts stomped loudly through the stone walkway. The duo were brandishing large club like weapons over their shoulders and were covered in leather armor with massive serpent skulls over their heads as helmets. One orc stopped to glare at Peter while letting out a deep, angry snarl before continuing on down the corridor.

As the orcs passed through without incident Peter commented on their wardrobe. "Looks uncomfortable. No wonder they're so grouchy..."

"Hm." Naiad laughed a little at Peter's joke. It wasn't often the spirited prisoner had such an interesting neighbor to speak with and had grown rather fond of Peter during his captivity. "Let's hope they don't return any time soon. I'd hate to have to endure their smell again."

This time it was Peter who laughed, though he couldn't laugh too deeply unless he wanted to suffer another coughing fit. "What else do you know of the new prisoners? Short, tall? Young, old?"

"I cannot give you any names," Naiad repeated. "but I can give you some details later."

"How's that?"

Naiad didn't reply to Peter's question.

"Right. Moment of silence." Struggling to lay down in a comfortable position that wouldn't cause him to cough, Peter did his best to quiet his mind and try to rest for a while longer. "Don't leave me hanging Naiad, I hate waiting..."

* * *

Ray was panting shallowly as he tried to withstand the incredible pain that ached at him with every breath he took. The jagged stones had cut deeply into his skin on his abdomen, leaving behind a deep purple bruise and large singular stab wound that bled relentlessly. Ray pressed a hand down against the injury to try and stem the bleeding and to support his chest as he breathed, but it did very little to aid him during his physical distress.

Janine held Ray's hand tightly and watched her injured friend suffer as he leaned desperately against the stone column to support his body upright. While she had been able to help Egon with the use of a first aid kit, she didn't have such a luxury in the prison cell to aid Ray.

"Ray, look at me." Janine urged as she watched his eyes glaze over and his eyelids droop. His face was pale from blood loss and he was covered in a fine sheen of sweat as he began falling into shock. "Stay awake. I know you're hurting but I need you to stay with me! Tell me what to do. How do I help you? How do I find a way to get us out of here?"

Ray looked over at Janine with an unfocused stare. Licking his dried lips he spoke softly, trying to sound confident despite his overwhelming sense of doubt.

"I... I don't know." He flinched as he sucked in a breath through his clenched teeth. His hand tightened around Janine's as he tried to endure the pain and keep his thoughts clear. "I don't know how to escape." Ray motioned toward the energy barrier on their cell with a simple nod of his head. "I can't... I can't power off the energy... field."

"Okay, we'll focus on escape later." Janine put her opposite hand on his leg and could feel his entire body shaking in pain. "What can I do to help you? How can I ease the pain?"

"You... You can't." He gasped and his eyes shut slowly. His head lolled to the side as unconsciousness stole his mind, his hand falling limp in Janine's hand.

"Ray?" Janine tightened her grip on his cold hand and pulled her other hand from his leg and to the side of his face. "Ray, talk to me! Wake up!"

The engineer didn't rouse from his unconsciousness or respond to Janine's voice. The hand that had been bracing itself against his injury fell away, stained with blood, to his side.

"Oh, Ray..." Janine could finally see the full extent of the damage and winced empathetically. The stab wound was deep and could easily have caused internal damage. "Please don't do this, please don't give up."

A whispering voice called out to Janine from a metal grate in the corner of the stone floor. "You're friend is in danger, yes?"

"...Yes." Janine answered as she stared at the thin metal bars over the square shaped dark grate in the corner. "Can you help us?"

"Perhaps." Through the bars a very thin, humanoid hand set a round stone bowl on the floor just outside the grate. Inside the bowl was a pulpy green mass of herbs and clean water. "Use this. It'll ease his pain and stop the bleeding."

Janine scrambled toward the bowl and picked it up with both hands. She peered inside the grate but didn't see anyone or anything inside of it. "Hello? Where'd you go?"

Silence.

"Well, at least we have some help." Janine stated as she carried the bowl back over to Ray. Peeling back the torn fabric of Ray's jumpsuit and gray t-shirt beneath Janine used the mass of offered herbs to clean the wound and cover it under the green pulp. "I hope this works, Ray. I don't know what else to do!"

* * *

Winston carried two large tomes of paranormal records and mythical beasts up to the second floor to the rec room so he and Egon could work together. During his research Winston had stumbled across an interesting passage regarding royal bloodlines and a potential means to subdue the power of a royal poltergeist's wrath.

According to the chronicled tale there was a warrior who had owed a life debt to a royal poltergeist but refused to pay until he had finished combat. To avoid paying the debt he had used a mystical charm that emitted a field of energy that protected him by concealing his own life energy from the poltergeist's power. The charm itself had been lost to time but the effects of the charm had survived.

"So what do you think Egon? Can it work?"

"It's entirely possible." Egon read the passage Winston had uncovered and was thoroughly intrigued. "If we can replicate this exact energy field then we can pass through our plane into Moirai's plane undetected and rescue our friends."

"But how long does it last?"

"Without additional information I can't accurately or inaccurately calculate a precise time frame."

"What about an educated guess?"

Egon shook his head slightly. "Perhaps an hour."

"That'll have to do. Walk me through the process and I'll modify the PKE meters to shield us."

"Very well." Egon put a hand to his head and leaned forward as a twinge of nausea suddenly turned his stomach.

"Hey, come on man." Winston put a hand to Egon's shoulder to support his friend and guide him gently back against the couch to rest. "Don't blackout on my. I need you!"

"Yes. I will do my best to retain consciousness."

"That's all I can ask for." Winston lamented as he let his hand go from Egon's shoulder and made a mental checklist of the supplies he'd need in order to properly modify the PKE meters. "Hang in there, man."

* * *

Peter was dozing very lightly in his cold cell. Unable to sleep but unable to keep his eyes open he laid on his back with his legs drawn up on the bench and his arms resting forward across his chest. Although uncomfortable it let Peter rest without coughing. A gentle whisper caught his ear and he opened one eye to glance over at the wall where Naiad's voice always came from.

"That you Naiad?"

"Yes." Naiad confirmed as she addressed her new friend quietly. "I have some information on the two new prisoners. Would you like to hear it?"

"Lay it on me!"

"The male is indeed injured. He had been attacked before being imprisoned and is suffering from a wound to his stomach. The female is uninjured and is tending to his injury. She called him a name."

"What's the name? Maybe I know him." Peter's response was as sarcastic as it was dry. "Or at the very least I could recruit him as an ally against Moirai."

"She called him 'Ray'."

"RAY?!" Peter bolted upright quickly and painfully. His shouting voice echoed loudly throughout the cell as a coughing fit tore through his chest and knocked the wind from his body.

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	6. Making A Move

The revelation caused such a surge of panicked adrenaline to course through Peter's veins that his heart began race, pounding loudly in his chest as his breathing quickened and immediately transitioned into a violent coughing fit. The coughs so were so loud, haggard, choking and deep that Peter couldn't catch his breath and fell from the bench to the floor and curled up on his side and hacked desperately trying to breathe and calm himself down.

"You're very ill." Naiad stated as she listened to Peter's coughing fit from her cell. "You must be on your guard, lest Moirai brings her wrath upon you. Weakness will not be tolerated. She may hastened her schedule and resort to your torture sooner. In your current state you cannot possibly hope to survive."

Peter let out a weak breath and slowly took in a deeper one to calm his spasming lungs and ease himself out of the coughing fit. Rolling from his side and onto his knees he stood up very slowly in the center of his cell. "Ray is here..." His voice was shaking and cracked a little as he spoke. "and you said there is... a female with him. A woman." He blinked slowly and stared blankly at the floor. "Does she have red hair? Wear glasses?"

"Yes. Her hair is as red as the sun and she wore lenses over her eyes."

"Janine." Peter leaned against the cold stone wall of his cell and winced at the sudden throb of the headache that refused to leave him alone. "You said Ray was injured. How bad is it?"

"His abdomen. He is bleeding from a terrible wound and is now unconscious."

"No..."

"Do not fret." Naiad soothed, her voice as sweet and sincere as a kindly mother tending to her child. "Janine as you call her is with him."

"That's good." Peter suddenly felt weak, his legs trembling with visible shudders. His face paled further as his blood pressure suddenly dropped and his vision began to grow dark. "At least they're... together."

"Peter?" Naiad couldn't see him but could hear that he was still in distress. "Please do not fall asleep. You are too ill and may not be able to wake up again."

"You think that's... a bad thing?"

Peter let his legs give way and he slid down the wall until he was crumpled up into a ball pressed against the cell wall. His eyes closed and his head bowed as he let the sweet bliss of unconsciousness steal his mind away from the waking horror of his imprisonment.

* * *

Winston had finished modifying two PKE meters, using his own skills as Ray's apprentice engineer and Egon's guidance the device had been properly altered with no ill effects and would be able to properly shield any mortal being who dared to venture into Moirai's realm.

"Shouldn't take too long." Winston called out as he set the PKE meters into the large truck bed of Ecto-2 to receive a full charge. "I should be back within a couple of hours."

Egon had made his way down into the garage and zipped up his overtly tarnished jumpsuit over his torn shirt and bandaged wounds. "I'm going with you."

"What? No!" Winston tried to use his military voice to change Egon's mind but the physicist was too stubborn and emotionally discipline to be affected. "You're injured. You know as well as I do that you have a concussion, you're weak from blood loss and you've probably suffered from sort of internal bleed. You need to lay down and rest."

"I will." Egon pulled open the passenger side door of Ecto-2 and sat down in the seat. "After we rescue our friends."

"Just for the record, I'm completely against you going on there in your condition."

"Noted and appreciated."

"Alright then." Winston opened the driver's side door of the pick-up truck and took his seat behind the wheel. "Let's go save our friends."

* * *

A low groan of discomfort escaped Ray's lips as he slowly regained consciousness under Janine's watch. As her fingers gently combed through Ray's hair she whispered to him to gently rouse him back into the waking world. The coldness of the cell was dangerous and threatened to exasperate his already weakened condition.

"You're going to be okay." She stated confidently. "The bleeding has stopped and you've been sleeping for a while now."

"...Janine?" Ray's opened slowly but fully. His mismatched irises were glassy but he managed to focus on her lovely face as she smiled warmly at him. "Are we... still trapped?"

"Yeah. But don't worry, I think we have an ally."

"What makes you think that."

Janine motioned to the mass of green herbs that had been used to pack the stab wound in Ray's abdomen. The green hue of the plants had taken on a brown tone as the dried blood saturated each little petal and stem.

"She gave me the medicine that helped you to stop bleeding. She also said the plants would ease the pain."

Ray tentatively took in a deep breath and relaxed as the effort remained painless. Carefully he lifted away a few of the herbs to look at the wound beneath and immediately stiffened at the blood sight that marred his own body.

"Are you hurt?"

"Me?" Janine was a little shocked by the question. "I'm fine, you're the one who got hit."

"I just wanted to be sure."

Janine picked up Ray's hand again and held tightly. "Don't worry about me. Just worry about yourself."

Ray squeezed Janine's hand firmly. "Do you have any information on Peter?"

"No. I haven't see him and I didn't ask our little friend when she stopped by. I was too focused on you."

"It's okay Janine. We'll find him, I know it."

* * *

Peter rasped harshly as he struggled to breathe. What was once a simple chest cold brought on by the frigid condition of the cell had quickly evolved into a severe respiratory infection. Mentally Peter steeled himself and tried to use mind over to matter to keep himself from coughing and drawing unwanted attention from Moirai.

"You're awake, aren't you?" Naiad asked from her cell. "You're much stronger than I had anticipated."

"Y-Yeah." He stammered as he fought back a cough. "Ray and Janine? How are they?"

"I do not know. But I know that the guards are uneasy."

"Why's that?"

"Intruders."

"Intruder? We're not going to be caught up in the middle of a war, are we?"

"That has yet to be seen." Naiad didn't sound frightened. Her confidence was enough to keep Peter calm as well. "Be patient my friend. You are stronger than Moirai knows."

"I hope you're right..." Peter placed his arm on the edge of the seat in his cell and pulled himself back up onto the bench from the floor. "I hope Ray and Janine can hold out too. And Egon. And Winston. And everyone else who could be in danger because of me..."

"Do not blame yourself." Naiad urged fervently. "Your crime is merely being born of a treacherous bloodline."

"Thanks, that makes me feel much better!" Peter pressed his mouth into his arm to muffle a cough. His eyes were shut so tight streams of tears began to flow down his face. As he regained his composure and took in a deep breath he had one last question for Naiad. "How long have I been trapped here? It feels like I've been locked away forever..."

"You've been imprisoned for nine of what you would call days now."

"Nine... days?" The idea of being gone for so long, the idea of being forgotten or beyond aid was enough to break his heart. "Then... That's it. No one can help me now..."

"Peter, you mustn't lose hope." The kind Naiad was determined to keep Peter from falling into despair. "You are innocent, your ancestor is guilty."

"Sins of the father type of thing, huh?" Peter cleared his throat before answering. "Never been a fan of that type of logic."

"In this world to punish one man for the crime of another is the worst offense that could ever be committed."

"Our laws pretty similar back in my world. At least they're supposed to be."

"If Moirai attempts to claim the debt of your ancestor through your life she will lose her power and fall into a realm of nothingness to linger for all eternity."

"So what am I worried about?"

"Moirai is as clever as she is cruel." Naiad stated with an unwavering tone. "She must have another plan for you."

"Remember what I said about feeling better?" He quipped dryly in response to Naiad's revelation.

"You can outwit Moirai. You can use our laws against her."

"How do I do that?"

Naiad once again fell silent as the two orc guards made their patrol of the corridor. Much to Peter's chagrin the two orcs took posts outside of the cell doors and showed no sign of leaving anytime soon.

"Damn it..." Peter muttered under his breath as he stared at the massive guards who prevented him from speaking to Naiad in private. "There has to be a way out of here."

Darkness swam before his eyes and a sudden chill raced through his core.

"Help me... please."

* * *

Ecto-2 pulled up the abandoned lot with the lights off and the siren quiet. Parking alongside Ecto-1 the two Ghostbusters exited the vehicle slowly, cautiously and didn't say a word to one another as they pulled the two PKE meters from their charging stations and powered up the small devices. Despite Egon's best effort to hide the incredible pain he was pushing through Winston knew his friend was hurting.

"You sure you want to do this?" Winston asked before he switched the modified PKE meter to the unique shielding frequency.

"Yes." Egon held the PKE meter tightly in his hands as he began walking over to the epicenter of the activity where Ray's modified trap was still resting. "We should be able to locate their last known position from over there."

Approaching the trap with a timid mindset Winston switched his PKE meter's frequency and became awash in a layer of green energy. Peering through the green veil of the energy he could see that the trap was still powered on, the white light was now purple and transparent to the naked eye, and just behind the trap was a large swirling portal of purple energy that bridged their world to Moirai's world.

"Egon, turn on your meter. You need to see this!"

Complying with Winston's request he turned the meter's frequency to the new channel and also became enshrouded in the protective green energy. As his eyes fixed on the trap and the portal he developed a new theory.

"This is how Moirai has been able to easily pass between realms. An energy of infinite power had been tapped after a great paranormal event thousands of years ago fueled this land. Moirai must be connected to this past event and has used this location to harness and channel the energy for her own purposes."

"She must also be monitoring the area for any intruders. Wouldn't surprise me if she managed to take Ray and Janine as her prisoners, too."

"If the energy can shield us long enough to enter the realm we should be able to locate our colleagues without being detected."

"Want to go in shifts? Make the meters last a little longer by using them one at a time?"

"Logically yes, that would make sense, but since we cannot risk Moirai locating one of us while the other is shielded it'd be best to enter the realm together and split up."

"Do you think you'll be okay on your own?"

"I'll persevere." Egon claimed as he adjusted his glasses over his eyes, careful not to aggravate his black eye in the process. "We cannot be certain that the energy shield will prevent us from making any detectable sound, so we cannot risk using radios to keep in contact."

"One hour. Then we get out there regardless if we found Peter, Ray or Janine. We can always recharge the meters and try again." Winston pointed to the time on his watch and made sure Egon could see it.

"Agreed."

"Let's do this then."

Walking side by side Winston and Egon managed to step into the epicenter of the activity without alerting Moirai to their arrival. The green energy shield had rendered the two mortal men invisible to ethereal eyes as they stepped into the realm of paranormal existence.

The air was cold and smelled stagnant with age and dust. The interior of the portal lead to a towering stone staircase that descended into a pit of darkness that showed no sign of activity. It was quiet save for the sounds of their boot steps slowly marching down the stone surface into the utter blackness of Moirai's realm and to the dungeon in which she held her unfortunate prisoners.

As the duo finally reached the bottom of the stairs they found themselves standing at a T-junction, one corridor heading East and the second corridor going in the opposite direction heading West. At the the middle of the junction at the base of the stairs was a small alcove with a massive red door that created a central chamber of Moirai's dungeon.

"I'll head West." Winston whispered and pointed in the corresponding direction. "One hour."

Egon nodded once as he turned to walk down the Eastern corridor.

Winston's experience as a marine had given him an ideal sense for stealth and patience as he crept down the corridor at a steady pace, keeping his steps light as to not create noise. Whenever necessary he'd stop and press his body up against the wall to ensure he didn't disturb anything that could alert a patrolling guard.

"Man, this place stinks!" Winston complained to himself as the acrid stench of otherworldly decay stung his nostrils. "Where's it coming from?"

A loud grumble behind a large blue door at the end of the corridor made his jump. Freezing in place and pressing his back flat up against the wall the door opened and a large orc like beast stomped through the corridor, brushing past Winston without even taking notice of the mortal trespasser.

As the orc walked by Winston held his breath. "Now I know where that smell is coming from..." He said to himself as the guard passed by without incident.

The door wasn't locked and had barely closed when Winston grabbed onto the metal, round handle that hung on the side of the door and pulled it open just wide enough to slip through without the guard noticing a disturbance taking place just a few yards behind him.

"Okay, I have to be getting close." Winston closed the door very slowly and quietly behind him before moving on. As he turned to look down the next corridor his heart skipped a beat as the entire length of the stone walled walkway was lined with hundreds of cells, each one occupied in some form.

Each cell had the translucent purple energy barricade that barred entry or exit of the cell. The first dozen cells were filled with the bones of various prisoners who had long since died. Some of the bones looks humanoid while the others were that of creatures and beings that Winston couldn't even begin to fathom.

"I have to hurry." Winston looked down at his watch and calculated how much time he had left. "It's already been twenty minutes!"

Jogging down the corridor at a hastened pace Winston looked back and forth at both sides of the corridor to look into each cell as he passed by. None of the occupants were the friends he was looking for. Most of them looked to be inhabitants from another world who had been starved or tortured to the brink of death. A part of him wanted to stop and help the prisoners all escape, but he knew deep down that he couldn't do anything to help them; they were already too far gone to be saved.

A low feminine whisper from several cells away caught Winston's ear. "Janine?"

The voice stopped suddenly and remained quiet for a few seconds before finally responding. "Winston?"

"Yeah, it's me!" He raced toward the cell and stopped in front of the barricade. Peering inside he saw Janine kneeling on the floor beside Ray, who was visibly wounded and needing help. "I'm here."

"Where?" Janine asked as she looked toward the sound of Winston's voice through the barricade. "I can't see you."

Winston reached out a hand and held his breath. Without any resistance is hand easily slipped through the energy field of the barricade without suffering any ill effects. "Hold on."

Janine wasn't sure what she was supposed to be waiting for but she did as she was told. Putting one hand to the side of Ray's face she tried to rouse him from his light sleep and look at her.

As soon as he passed through the barricade Winston turned off his PKE meter to reveal himself to Janine and Ray. "Found you!"

"Winston!" Janine shot up and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "Thank goodness!"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Janine let Winston go and looked back down at Ray. "but Ray's in bad shape."

"Don't worry," he handed the meter to Janine to hold as he knelt down in front of Ray. Putting his hand to the side of Ray's neck he nodded once. "his pulse is strong. A little slow but he's definitely holding his own."

"How do we get out of here?" Janine asked as looked about the cell impatiently.

"First of all, I need to get Ray up and..." Winston had noticed the dried blood and dead herbs on Ray's abdomen. After examining the sight he found the stab wound and felt his heart sink. "Hm, I can't put him over my shoulder with his stomach injured. I'll have to help him walk."

Ray had heard and recognized the voices speaking around him. Opening his eyes he spotted Winston kneeling before him and he smiled. "Winston... Good to see you."

"Same." Winston happily smiled back. "Come on, we need to get you out of here. Give me your arm, I'll help you walk."

"I'll do my best..." Ray lifted one arm and let Winston take it, wrapping it around his neck before wrapping his own arm around Ray's waist.

Janine anxiously waited while Winston helped Ray to stand up and let him lean heavily against him. Certain he had steady enough footing Winston nodded toward Janine.

"Put your hand on my shoulder," he instructed her calmly. "and then power on the PKE meter."

Doing as she was told Janine, Winston and Ray were all enveloped in the green energy that protected them from Moirai and gave them all safe passage through the barricade.

"It's okay." Winston insisted as he took a slow step forward. "We can pass through the barrier as long as we have the PKE meter on."

"Do you know how to get out of here?"

"Yeah," Winston confirmed as the group walked through the barricade without any problems. "but we need to be quick. We can't risk the meter powering down."

* * *

Egon had made the same progress as Winston, reaching the end of the corridor and locating the blue door at the end. Like the door in the Western corridor it wasn't locked and Egon was able to pull it open without difficulty. Hundreds of cells lined the walls of this corridor as well, each one occupied either by prisoners who were already dead or in the process of dying.

"This is absolutely repugnant." Egon observed as he walked by each cell, glancing inside for any sign of his friends. "What intelligent being of honor could ever defend such an atrocious display of cruelty?"

"One might argue that such is a display is a punishment befitting the cruelty that has run rampant amongst the plane of the living." An unfamiliar feminine voice responded from one of the cells.

Egon stopped and looked inside the nearby cell to see a fair maiden with alabaster white skin standing idle in the center of the stone chamber. She was wearing a long white robe that flowed outward and billowed over the floor like a blooming flower. She had golden blonde hair that ran the length of her back and almost to her legs. Bright purple eyes stared at Egon, despite not being able to see him, and her rose red lips formed a kind smile.

"Do not worry." The strange woman told Egon softly. "I am Naiad. I will not harm another creature. Please consider me your ally."

"Why are you here?"

Her smile broadened as her eyes brightened further. "I will not harm another creature. That is why I am here."

"Your kindness is a crime?"

"My refusal to corrupt or to harm is my crime. Unwillingness to enforce punishment over our strict laws in seen as a weakness, and weakness itself is a crime."

"In whose eyes are you guilty?"

Naiad's smile faded and she turned away from Egon as she answered shamefully but honestly. "My mother. Moirai."

"Moirai... Is...?"

"Your friend is close." Naiad interrupted in a surprisingly sweet tone. She outstretched her arm and gestured to the cell next to her own. "But he is very ill. You must free him and escape before it is too late."

 _ **...to be continued...  
**_


	7. Justice

At those words, spoken honestly and sympathetically, Egon felt his stomach knot with worry. If Peter was ill, truly ill, then it was all the more crucial for Egon to escape with his friend sooner rather than later. Turning off the PKE meter Egon revealed himself in full to Naiad out of sheer respect and to give her a much needed sense of trust. She smiled in response and turned her gaze to her neighboring cell where Peter laid, alone.

"You must hurry." Naiad ushered Egon to move on to the next cell.

Without hesitation Egon rushed over to the barricade of energy that barred entrance to Peter's cell and turned the PKE meter back on just long enough to pass through without resistance or injury.

Peter was laying on his back on the stone bench inside his cell motionless and quiet. His cuffed hands were purple from the tightness of the restraints and resting on his legs, as his outstretched arms reached down his torso resting atop his body. Peter's face was pale and his lips had a twinge of blue from his inability to properly breathe from the sickness that was ravaging his body.

"Peter..." Egon turned off the PKE meter for the second time and knelt beside his friend. Placing his hand against Peter's neck he checked his pulse and could hear the ragged, crackling weak breaths that escaped from Peter's affected lungs as well as the heat radiating from his skin thanks to the fever. Tilting his head down Egon pressed his ear against Peter's chest and listened to his struggling breathing. "Infection. There's fluid building up in his lungs; most likely pneumonia."

Lifting his head back up he ran his hands down to the cuffs on Peter's wrists and found that there was no lock to be picked and no latch to be opened.

"Peter? Peter open your eyes." Egon demanded as he moved his hand back up to Peter's shoulders and helped to lift his friend up into a sitting position. "Come on, wake up. I'm here to help you."

Peter could barely hear Egon's voice from his deep state of unconsciousness. Unable to open his eyes he managed to utter a weak vocal response. "...Spengz..."

"Yes. It's me." Hearing Peter's voice, as pitiful and weak as it was, gave Egon a renewed sense of hope. "I'm getting you out of here."

Thinking quickly Egon took Peter's cuffed hands and draped pulled them over his head and pulled Peter's arm down around his own shoulders to support his friend's weight. Standing up slowly he let Peter's limb body lean heavily against his own as he powered up the PKE meter once more.

"I know you can hear me so I must ask that you remain as quiet as possible until we are clear of the dungeon."

Egon bit down on his lower lip as the sudden pain from Peter's added deadweight surged through every nerve fiber in his body. The lacerations began to seep blood once more as the weight exasperated his injuries caused his heart to race in response.

Walking slowly, his footsteps heavy and clumsy, Egon passed back through the cell and turned to exit the corridor from the direction in whence he came.

"Please be careful." Naiad pleaded softly as Egon and Peter passed by. "My mother will not follow you beyond the border of her territory. But you must be quick to escape her wrath. She will not show mercy to those who defy her."

"Thank you." Egon knew that even though she couldn't actually see him, only sense him, he owed her a nod of respect. "I will succeed."

Peter's voice rasped hoarsely as he managed to squeak out a pathetic plea. "...come with us... Escape."

Naiad couldn't dare to face the two fleeing Ghostbusters. "I... I cannot. I am not... strong enough."

"...if we can make it..." Peter's pale, sunken face managed a weak but sincere smile. "you can, too..."

Naiad fell silent.

Time was too crucial to wait for her response. Lamentably Egon and Peter had no choice but to continue on with their escape even if that meant leaving behind Naiad who had been so kind and courageous to aid them when they needed it the most. Through the purple hued barricade of her cell Naiad watched as her friends limped away toward the exit of the dungeon at a painfully slow pace.

"May the guardians watch over you." Naiad prayed as she bowed her head solemnly.

* * *

Winston led Ray and Janine to safety down the corridor and toward the massive staircase that connected Moirai's realm to the plane of the living. The hour was nearly up and the PKE meter would lose its power. Without the shield to protect them the trio would be defenseless against the wrath of Moirai and her minions.

"It won't be easy but we need to climb the stairs together." Winston urged in a low voice. "Come on, one step at a time."

"Wait, what about Peter and Egon?" Janine asked logically without budging an inch. "You said Egon was going to find Peter and get him out of here, too."

"He will." Winston stated confidently as he put one hand on Janine's arm to reassure her. "But if we get caught there will be no way for him to rescue all of us. We have to trust that Egon will get Peter out in time."

A low groan of pain from Ray reminded them both that there was another important reason for them to escape.

"Ray needs us to get him out of here, now."

"I just..." Janine looked back over her shoulder to the large door that connected the two corridors of the dungeon together and sighed with an intense sense of guilt in her voice. "I just hate leaving them behind."

"So do I." His hand tightened around her arm as he empathetically shared her reluctance. "But we can't do anything more but wait and hope for the best."

With a somber agreement Janine finally stepped forward as she kept the PKE meter powered up and helped guide Winston, with Ray unconscious on his back, up the stone steps and back toward the surface where their world was awaiting their return.

* * *

Egon huffed as he struggled with the weight of Peter on his back and the exhausting pain of his still raw injuries gnawing away at him with every beat of his racing heart. Never one to do anything physical or too taxing beyond running around with a proton pack on his back, the effort to carry Peter to safety was proving itself to be a taxing venture that was pushing him to his limits.

The orc guards patrolling the corridor remained oblivious to Egon's presence and Peter's escape as they passed by the nearly invisible mortals without noticing a single abnormality. The biggest risk was passing through the doors that connected corridors to the heart of the dungeon and to the lone staircase that provided any entry or exit from the dungeon itself.

Passing through the doorway Egon fell to his knees and breathed deeply, trying to catch a second wind so he could continue forward as he leaned against the cool wall of the stone dungeon. Peter was still unconscious. His own breathing wasn't fairing any better than Egon's, and his body remained lifeless throughout the escape from the dungeon.

"Almost there." Egon told Peter as well as himself to try to give himself a little pep talk. "All we need to do is climb a set of stairs."

"...why is it always stairs?" Peter managed to pathetically joke as he fought to regain consciousness.

"Wish I knew..."

Forcing himself to get back to his feet Egon used one hand to brace himself against the stone wall he was already leaning against and rose slowly back into a standing position.

Moving forward at a shuffling pace Egon made his way to the base of the towering staircase and looked up into the blackness that would eventually turn into light.

"We're close..." Egon bowed his head and let out a deep sigh. "I just hope Winston, Ray and Janine are also so fortunate."

* * *

Winston and Janine had managed to carry Ray over to Ecto-1 just a few minutes before their PKE meter lost its power. The battery was dangerously low and could only produce the shield for another few minutes before burning out entirely.

"Made it." Winston sighed in relief as he opened the rear passenger door to Ecto-1 and laid Ray down flat on his back across the backseat. Ray hadn't regained consciousness but fortunately the movement hadn't reopened his injury during the escape. "Now we wait for Egon."

"I don't like this." Janine rubbed her hands up and down her arms as dread suddenly set in. "This seems too easy."

His experience as both a marine and as a Ghostbuster told him instinct often trumped any strategy. "You may be right."

"So what do we do?"

"First, we get Ecto-1 further away from the epicenter." Winston opened the driver's side door as he closed the rear passenger door. "You need to drive out toward the road and wait."

"What? I'm not leaving you behind!"

"You're not." Winston reassured her calmly as he took the PKE meter from her shaking hand and clipped it to his belt. "You're just getting a headstart. Look, Egon's still in rough shape and I can only assume that Peter is just as rough. We'll need to get out here and to the nearest hospital as soon as possible. Ray's stable for now but that could change at any moment."

"I..."

"Please Janine. I trust you!" Winston motioned with his hand for her take a seat behind the steering wheel. "I'll take Ecto-2 in a little closer so I can pick up both Egon and Peter and get out of here as soon as I see them."

"Okay... I'll do it." Janine sat down behind the wheel and let Winston shut the door behind her. "But please don't do anything reckless!"

"I promise."

Janine turned the key in the ignition of Ecto-1 and looked into the backseat to peer down at Ray's oddly peaceful face as he laid in blissful unconsciousness in the back of the hearse. Backing hearse down the lot for a few yards before turning it around she drove off toward the road and parked, waiting for Winston to catch up to her with Egon and Peter safely along with him.

Pulling open the door to Ecto-2 Winston jumped inside and pulled the pick up truck closer to the epicenter of the initial attack and backed up to the edge of the line. Winston kept the engine running as he waited for any sign of his friends successfully escaping the dungeon. Thinking quickly Winston hopped out of the truck and pulled down the large truck bed door to ensure that Egon and Peter could climb into the back with little difficulty. As he prepped the truck Winston looked back at the trap that had opened the gateway and looking down at the PKE meter hanging from his belt.

"Hmm..." Taking the PKE meter with his hands he looked at the meter and over at the trap curiously. "I wonder if I can rig the trap collapse the portal?"

Bending down Winston grabbed the release trigger connected to the trap and then pulled it by its connected cable to reel in the trap without having to set foot into the epicenter and risk alerting Moirai to his presence.

The trap had been shut off due to a safety mechanism in place to keep it from overheating, but the gateway had enough energy to sustain itself. Slipping the PKE meter down inside the bulk of the trap Winston hover his finger over the power switch with one hand and placed his other hand on the back the trap ready to push or even throw it back into the epicenter quickly. Placing his boot over the cable just before the release trigger to ensure that the trigger wasn't accidentally placed out of range the marine waited patiently to make his move.

* * *

Egon reached the top of the stairs and felt his legs buckle from exhaustion. As he knelt on the stone floor he looked up and stared at the welcoming warm, white light of his world shining through the purple swirling portal that separated the two realms.

"...I can..." Peter weakly stated and stopped quickly. "...I can smell... fresh air..." He began coughing violently which echoed loudly through the stairwell.

Knowing that Peter wouldn't be able to silence his coughs Egon forced himself back up to his feet and rushed through the gateway to safety. His legs were trembling violently and the world around Egon began to muffle as dots danced before his eyes.

"Egon!" Winston's voice called out to the physicist as the PKE meter that once shielded Egon began to lose its power. The green energy aura fluctuated allowing Winston to catch brief glimpses of the two fleeing men racing away from the portal. "This way!"

"Winston!" Egon shouted in relieved response to see that his friend had already escaped the dungeon.

As the PKE lost the final reserves of its power the earth began to tremble. Moirai and her patrolling minions had sensed the intrusion of the moral men on her immortal land. Rising once more through the trap like a plume of purple smoke Moirai manifested herself before the three Ghostbusters.

"Not possible!" She hissed as she observed Egon carrying Peter to safety. "I should have killed you when I had the chance mortal."

Egon paused momentarily to look over his shoulder and estimate how close Moirai was to his current position. She wasn't moving from her point of origin, but two orc guards with massive spears in their equally massive hands were stampeding toward Egon and Peter with all of their might.

"Just keep running!" Winston urged as he timed his move. As soon as Egon and Peter were clear he'd use the trap to send Moirai back the hellish depths where she belongs!

Egon was too tired, too weak keep running. Despite his best efforts, despite the immense adrenaline coursing through his veins, he collapsed onto the ground with a heady thud. Peter fell just as heavily onto Egon's back and the two men remained motionless on the decimated concrete terrain.

"NO!" Winston shouted with the utmost dread and fear in otherwise calm voice.

Just as the orcs were about to leap onto their downed targets a burst of white light erupted from the earth just a few inches behind where Egon and Peter laid. The light created a wall of pure energy that stunned the orcs the moment they made contact with the surface and collapsed into a drained heap on the ground.

"What?!" Moirai snarled as she watched her guards so easily bested by a simple beam of light. "How is this possible?"

Winston's eyes widened as he watched the protective barrier of light shield Egon and Peter from the orcs and seemingly from Moirai herself. From within the shining rays of the light a figure emerged and stood boldly before Moirai without fear.

"You must stop this madness, Mother." Naiad pleaded as she stood her ground to defend the defenseless.

"Naiad... I knew you would betray me. I should've ended your life before your treachery interfered with my work."

"This must end, Mother." Naiad repeated her plea as she raised her hand before herself, ready to engage in combat if Moirai made a move toward her. "You are seeking to punish innocent mortals for the crimes of another. This cannot stand, this is not justice."

"His ancestor deceived me." Moirai snarled bitterly. "His ancestor used a foreign magic to elude my sight. To atone for his deception he swore to me the blood of his thirteenth descendant upon his thirtieth year. I will not be denied what I am owed."

"And to what is it you are owed? A broken contract? You abuse your power and live in hypocrisy!" Naiad's words carried an authority that contrasted her gentle beauty as she spoke. "You admit you'd rather do away with your own daughter to seek revenge. How is killing your own offspring any more righteous than his ancestor selling his soul to you?"

At those Moirai froze. It was as if Moirai had finally opened her eyes and seen her own wickedness for what it truly was.

"As your heiress and only child I seek to dispose of your right to our royal bloodline." Naiad asserted her power over her mother's. A fluctuation in the air reflected the balance of power between the two ethereal deities. "You have neglected your duties as guardian of this land and have corrupted our name. We were once guardians of mortal men, not destructors."

Egon lifted his head and watched in awe as Naiad's own power weakened Moirai's right before his eyes. Peter, who had been lingering on the edge of consciousness, had recognized the voice of Naiad as that of his friend. Opening his eyes he managed a weak smile as Naiad overtook her mother and displaced the negative energy with positive energy.

A while aura of light surrounded Naiad and infused her with a power that her own mother couldn't even begin to channel.

"...Winston." Peter managed to call out somewhat hoarsely. "...do it."

Winston surveyed the scene and saw his opportunity. Tossing the trap through the barricade he watched as Naiad used her own enhanced energy to power the trap and guided it toward Moirai.

"Goodbye, Mother." Naiad stated flatly as the trap burst open with the brightest light that any of the Ghostbusters had ever seen.

Winston put up his arm to shield his eyes as the intense light surrounded Moirai and her vicious orcs, and pulled them all down into the dark depths of her own realm. Naiad, whose own energy was different that Moirai, was unaffected by the trap and watched as her mother was finally defeated. Moirai's reign of terror had come to an end after centuries of torture.

The trap shut and the aid became lighter, brighter and seemed to be brimming with energy.

"Told you..." Peter laughed triumphantly despite his heavy lungs. "you were strong, Naiad. Thank you..."

Naiad turned and smiled at the three Ghostbusters as Winston rushed over to Peter and Egon. "Please. Go in peace." Naiad stated calmly as she waved her hands over Peter's body, the cuffs unlocking and falling away beside him. "Know that the Ghostbuster will always have my blessing. We are allies."

"Thank you." Winston appreciatively smiled as Naiad floated up into the air and faded into a beam of warm sunlight.

"She's... gone." Peter stated just seconds before his eyes closed and he fell unconscious once more.

"Peter?" Winston put his hand on Peter's back and looked down at his face. "Don't worry man, we have you."

* * *

Driving to the hospital was bitter-sweet for Winston and Janine. While their friends were safe and now getting proper treatment, the scars of their experiences would last forever. Some scars are physical, others are mental, but it's always the latter that hurts the most.

Peter, Egon and Ray were all roomed together during their two day stay at the hospital. Peter had in fact developed pneumonia and required breathing treatments, antibiotics and constant monitoring. After the first twelve hours after admission his lungs began to clear up and showed no sign of permanent damage.

Ray's stab would required surgery to repair. The operation went smoothly, no complications arose and Ray was expected to make a full recovery with three weeks. As per doctor's orders Ray was prohibited from any heavy lifting for the next six weeks, but it was a small price to pay just to have Ray alive and kicking.

Egon had suffered a mild concussion courtesy or Moirai. The numerous lacerations had been stitched closed and as a result Egon was given a course of antibiotics as well as a tetanus shot. As sore as he was he had still fared better than his colleagues.

"How do you feel?" Janine asked as she sat beside Egon's bed in the recovery room.

"Tired." Egon stated honestly as he looked over at the relieved receptionist. "But better. Thank you."

Peter pulled the oxygen mask from his mouth as he interrupted from his bed across from Egon. "How about some love for the psychologist? I was the one imprisoned for nine days, you know!"

"Peter," Ray replied curtly from his own beside right beside Peter. "it was nine days in Moirai- I mean Naiad's realm. It was only eight hours here."

"Still a long time!" Peter defended and immediately began coughing. At that moment Winston walked into the room with a book tucked under his arm. He walked over to Peter's bed and replaced the mask over his face. A muffled 'thanks' from Peter just made Winston shake his head.

"I just spoke to the doctor," Winston announced optimistically. "you'll all be out of here in two days. You're in the clear!"

"Too long..." Peter whined again in an overtly theatrical manner.

Janine adjusted her glasses and gave him a stern look. "You know, we could've left you down there if we wanted to."

Peter flashed Janine a cheeky grin. "What would you do without me though?" He coughed once and continued. "You'd miss me!"

Janine's sternness melted into a warm smile and her entire demeanor relaxed. "Yeah, I think I would."

Winston handed the book he had been carrying over to Peter. "Check this out. While you guys were getting treatment I did a little digging into that royal bloodline fiasco and the name 'Naiad'. Turns out Moirai's grievance with Peter's ancestor was over more than just a broken deal."

"Oh?" Peter opened the book and read the page Winston had marked earlier. "Huh? Oh... Well, that makes sense."

"What is it Peter?" Egon asked curiously.

Winston answered on Peter's behalf as the psychologist was too busy reading the passage. "Moirai had fallen in love with Peter's ancestor but Peter's ancestor was in love with Naiad. Moirai thought she could seduce his ancestor by offering him a contract that would give him incredible power, skill and luck in the battlefield and in exchange he'd wed Moirai. Unfortunately he couldn't bring himself to leave Naiad, even after signing the contract."

Egon nodded as he now understood why Moirai was bitter and full of hate. "Jealous of her daughter and feeling insecure by her inability to take over the mind or heart of a mortal man she cursed his bloodline and spent the subsequent years channeling her powers for the distinct purpose of harming whomever it was who had the misfortune of being born in the Venkman bloodline as the thirteenth descendant."

"Lucky me... Guys you know I love you, right?" Peter continued with a sincerely joyful grin on his face as he looked about the room at his friends who had risked everything to help bring him home. "I mean it. Thanks for coming after me. I really mean it."

"Of course, Peter." Egon's answer carried a surprising amount of sweetness. "You'd do the same for any of us."

"He's right." Winston agreed wholeheartedly. "You'd be there in a heartbeat!"

"I'd like to think so." Peter replied just as sweetly. "We've known each other for too long to just give up on each other."

"Almost ten years now. College and the late night parties seemed so long ago..." Ray spoke up and set the mood for the rest of the night. "Which reminds me, Peter, how was your birthday?"

The look on Peter's face as the memories of his painful hangover was all it took to cause the room to burst out into laughter. Peter himself soon joined in as the much needed lightheartedness took its toll on the five exhausted members of the Ghostbusters.

 _ **-The End  
**_


End file.
